joewein.de LLC fighting spam and scams on the Internet

Try our spam filter! Free trial for 30 days

"419" Scam – Advance Fee / Fake Lottery Scam

• About the 419 (Advance Fee) scam
• "Is that email a scam?" - Check it online here!
  
• Frequently asked Questions (419 FAQ)
• Phone numbers used by 419 scammers
  (+225 +229 +234 +27 +31 +32 +34 +44 other)
• Company names mentioned in 419 spam:
  1 A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
• Support our efforts to stop scams!
  
• How to report 419 spam to us
• What can you do when you receive 419 spam
  
  
• Spam archive, Daily index
  

Victims never receive this non-existent fortune but are tricked into sending their money to the criminals, who remain anonymous. They hide their real identity and location by using fake names and fake postal addresses as well as communicating via anonymous free email accounts and mobile phones.

Read more about such scams here or in our 419 FAQ. Use the Scam-O-Matic to verify suspect emails.

Click here to report a problem with this page.

Some comments by the Scam-O-Matic about the following email:

• An email address listed inside this email has been used in a known fraud before.
• The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
  • "dear sir/madam" (a standard Nigerian greeting phrase)
  • "from the desk of" (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
• This email message is a fake lottery scam. Consider the following facts about real lotteries:
  
  1. They don't notify winners by email.
  2. You can't win without first buying a lottery ticket.
  3. They don't randomly select email addresses to award prizes to.
  4. They don't use free email accounts (Yahoo, Hotmail, etc) to communicate with you.
  5. They don't tell you to call a mobile phone number.
  6. They don't tell you to keep your winnings secret.
  7. They will never ask a winner to pay any fees to receive a prize!
• This email lists mobile phone numbers. Use of such numbers is typical for scams because they allow criminals to conceal their true location. They can receive calls in an Internet cafe from where they send you emails, while pretending to be in some office.
  • +27734788080 (South Africa, prepaid mobile phone)
• This email lists free webmail addresses. Use of such addresses is typical for scams. Lotteries, banks and any but the smallest of companies do not normally use such addresses. Criminals use them to anonymously send and receive email at Internet cafes.
  • rsalotteryclaim@executivemail.co.za (email address has been used in a known fraud before)

Fraud email example:

From: randsalottery@executivemail.co.za
Date: Tue, 25 Apr 2006 04:20:22 -0800
Subject: Contact our claims Manager to redeem your Cash Prize.

FROM THE DESK OF THE PROMOTION MANAGER
RAND SA NATIONAL LOTTERY,
LOTTERY PROMOTIONS/AWARD DEPARTMENT.
SOUTH AFRICA.


Dear Sir/Madam,

We wish to bring to your notice that you have won a cash prize of
$1,000.000.00(One Million United States Dollars in Rand SA NATIONAL
LOTTERY Easter Promotional draw published 16th of April 2006.

Your email address was selected through a computer ballot system drawn from
database of 9,500,000 email addresses of individuals from Africa, America,
Asia,Australia, Canada, Europe, Middle East, and New Zealand as part of our
electronic business Promotions Program.

This lottery promotion was sponsored by the Rand SA lottery Trust fund and
approved by the South African Gaming Board and the International Association
of Gaming Regulators (IAGR).

You are to contact our claims Director with the information below to process
your claim.

Name: Mr. Paul Nkosi.
Tel: +27-73-478-8080.
Email:rsalotteryclaim@executivemail.co.za

For quick identification of your winning,please indicate the following details in
your email to the claims manager.

i.Secret pin code. X7pwyz2005
ii.Winning reference number SA2551256003/23.

Winners are advised to keep their winning details/ information from the public to avoid
fraudulent claims.

Finally, you are required to contact the claims officer not later than 14 working days from
the day you receive this notification message for due processing and remittance of
your prize.


Accept our hearty congratulations!


MRS MARGARET POWELL
LOTTERY CO-ORDINATOR

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam